Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Feb 2007
304 pages
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publication Information
Jon Clinch takes us on a journey into the history and heart of one of American literature's most brutal and mysterious figures: Huckleberry Finn's father. The result is a deeply original tour de force that springs from Twain's classic novel but takes on a fully realized life of its own.
Starred Review. If Clinch's debut falls short of Twain's achievement, it does further Twain's fiction." - PW.
"Every fan of Twain's masterpiece will want to read this inspired spin-off, which could become an unofficial companion volume. Highly recommended." - Library Journal.
"Despite needlessly confusing chronology, a memorable debut, likely to make waves." - Kirkus.
"This is a bold debut that takes a few tentative steps in tandem with the familiar Twain, but then veers off dexterously down a much more insidious, harrowing path." - Booklist.
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Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Photo: Christine Glade
Born and raised in the remote heart of upstate New York, Jon Clinch has been an English teacher, a metalworker, a folksinger, an illustrator, a typeface designer, a housepainter, a copywriter, and an advertising executive.
Clinch has lectured and taught widely, in settings as varied as the National Council of Teachers of English, Williams College, the Mark Twain House and Museum, and Pennsylvania State University. In 2008 he organized a benefit reading for the financially-ailing Twain House—enlisting such authors as Tom Perrotta and Stewart O'Nan—an event that saved the house from bankruptcy.
He lives with his wife, Wendy—founder of TheSkiDiva.com, the site for women who ski—in the Green Mountains of Vermont.
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